Reading the Books that Teach You to Write

When it comes to publishing, Rusch has seen it all. She’s the former editor of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. She has published books both traditionally and indie. She’s run a small press. She’s sold short stories to magazines. So it’s fair to say she’s seen just about every kind of contract and has negotiated them from both sides of the desk.

Who better to warn you about what’s in them? Whether you’re an indie author trying to sell foreign rights, a traditionally published author asking what’s next or a newbie just starting your publishing journey, you need three things: a good IP lawyer, the ability to walk away from a bad contract, and a copy of this book.

Rusch knows what can happen when an inexperienced writer—giddy from finally being offered a book contract—signs it without negotiating it. CLOSING THE DEAL ON YOUR TERMS is no substitute for good legal advice, but it’s a great introduction to the kinds of “gotcha” clauses publishers are adding to contracts these days.

Most writers only look at money paid and when the manuscript is due. They don’t understand all the ways that they can—and will—be screwed over. For example, deep discount clauses allow publishers to make money on your books without giving any to you. Rights grabs mean that your publisher could turn your book into a movie or a game without consulting you. Options clauses can legally bind you to your publisher for many years and many books. And these are only the most obvious examples. Modern contracts are full of worse things, buried under confusing language and contradictory clauses.

An agent won’t save you from these terrible contracts. In most cases, an agent will urge you to sign them. Many agents are also presenting their own agency agreements (read: contracts) to authors, binding that author to the agent as well as the publishing house.

Because things have changed so radically in the last thirty years, Rusch discourages writers from dealing with publishers for any book-length fiction at this time. However, she understands that every career is different, and doesn’t tell writers what to do. In fact, she defends writers who want to sign any contract under the sun, as long as that writer knows exactly what she’s signing and why.

CLOSING THE DEAL ON YOUR TERMS isn’t an easy read. It’s not one of those great craft books that will energize your writing or an inspirational book that will make you feel good. Rusch herself became quite downhearted while writing it, as she realized just how bad things had gotten in publishing land. But she stuck it out and did us all a great service by writing a book that isn’t fun, but necessary.

CLOSING THE DEAL ON YOUR TERMS is probably not a book that any writer wants. However, it’s exactly the book that every writer needs.

AUTHOR IN PROGRESS is a collection of brand new essays by the writers who blog at the excellent “Writer Unboxed” website. It’s divided into seven sections: Prepare, Write, Invite (get critique), Improve, Rewrite, Persevere, Release. Taken together, it’s meant to be a complete guide to the writing process, from the idea to the bookshelf.

However, this isn’t a craft class in a book. AUTHOR IN PROGRESS is about a writer’s lifestyle and overcoming mental blocks that keep us from the page. There are over fifty high-quality essays covering everything from time management to understanding murky feedback to overcoming jealousy, so it’s easy to flip to just the chapter you need for help with your current problem.

Walsh always seems to be one step ahead of the traps writers set for themselves. She’s gathered writers who have been doing this a long time and have developed solutions that work. Overcome with too many ideas? Read “Put a Ring on It” by Erika Robuck. Scared to go to a conference? Read “When Writers Gather” by Tracy Hahn-Burkett. Having empty nest syndrome after finishing a book? Read “Letting Go” by Allie Larkin. The contributors to AUTHOR IN PROGRESS have dealt with all the weird hangups writers have and can give solid advice from the perspective of someone who’s been there.

But my favorite essays were those that didn’t have definitive answers. Do writers need MFAs? Should writers use outlines? How useful is a professional editor? There’s more than one right answer and back-to-back essays explore both sides of the issue.

I’ve read a lot of how-to books and have, for the most part, moved past these kind of soup-to-nuts compilations in favor of more focused books that zero in on specific problem areas. However, AUTHOR IN PROGRESS is going on my keeper shelf. Because no matter what question I’m struggling with today, I know I will find the answer in its pages.

THE SECRET LIVES OF WRITERS was written in response to a magazine article. To be fair, the article was quite offensive and warranted a response. It said that writers live a privileged life, but that they can’t get there on their own. The article implied that without family money or a spouse with a high-earning job, writers could forget about writing, which is of course, ridiculous. People from every walk of life write books, and our success is due to our own hard work.

When the original article appeared in Salon, many authors wrote rebuttals to it on their own blogs. Lee decided to do one better and put together a book. She invited thirteen contributors to write essays about how they are juggling full-time jobs and writing. It was a great idea for a book, especially since the majority of writers have day jobs. How do they do it? What can we learn from them? At the very least, will reading this book make a struggling writer feel less alone?

However, THE SECRET LIVES OF WRITERS is not that book. None of the essays show writers how to combine writing with other paid work. They don’t discuss time management, budgeting, how to find part-time work and freelance jobs, or how to juggle writing and parenting. Most of Lee’s contributors are either not working full time or not writing a whole lot. One of them isn’t writing at all.

I tempered my expectations, thinking that maybe THE SECRET LIVES OF WRITERS was meant to be inspirational rather than a how-to. There’s nothing wrong with that, as long as the book truly encourages the reader. But these essays contained a whole lot of “look at me” and very little “you can do it, too.” Not only were the essays not inspiring, they weren’t particularly interesting. None of the contributors overcame huge obstacles to get where they are. They simply faced the mundane, everyday time sucks that we all face.

I understand what it’s like to be angry when someone is wrong on the internet. But perhaps Lee should have left a comment on the original article in Salon and moved on, continuing to be creative in the margins of her busy life, the way most of us do.

I’ve never been someone who believes in writer’s block. And the funny thing is, despite the title of the book, Mundis doesn’t believe in it either. He says writers who are blocked are suffering from perfectionism, fear, or having the unrealistic expectation that a writing career is going to solve all their problems.

Writers are burdened by other funny beliefs, too. Writers believe that they have to be a genius, or have a magical talent, or that writing should never be hard if you’re good at it, but your life will be hard if you’re a writer. Mundis has seen writers dump all kinds of emotional baggage on their writing, robbing the process of any joy it once had.

His solution is to bust the myths, see the self-defeating behaviors for what they are, and form new habits that will keep your butt in the chair no matter your mood. And even better, Mundis says he can fix you in a single afternoon.

BREAK WRITER’S BLOCK NOW is divided into two parts. The first is theory. How to get out of your own way by understanding where these self-limiting beliefs came from and how silly they are.

The second part is practice. Mundis takes writers step-by-step through the hard mental work of getting words on the page. He starts by reminding writers to stop thinking about selling what they write and just keep filling the pages. If that doesn’t work, he takes writers through some more hardcore mythbusting, focusing on their personal misconceptions about their own writing. Next, he advises writers to form a habit and stick to it with a set time and place. And if all else fails, set a timer and force yourself to write quickly (so as to outrun the internal censor).

None of this is new stuff, and most of it can be found in other how-to books, but Mundis has stripped away all the fluff and distilled things down to their very essence. The hardcover I have is ninety pages with very generous margins, and there is beauty in its brevity, because none of us have time to waste. We’ve got books to write!

BREAK WRITER’S BLOCK NOW is excellent for beginning writers. Mundis’ no-nonsense advice is tempered with a great deal of compassion. He understands that writers need encouragement along with a kick in the pants. And even though I’m a daily writer who mostly stays out of her own way, I’ve hit a rough patch or two. BREAK WRITER’S BLOCK NOW will stay on my shelf for those times I need a little nudge to get me back to the page.

I usually avoid books like 77 REASONS WHY YOUR BOOK WAS REJECTED, since I don’t believe going negative helps anyone. However, at a writing workshop I teach, a disgruntled writer left a copy behind, saying that the book had upset him so much, he never wanted to see it again. That made me curious. Was the writer overreacting? Or was it really that bad?

After I read 77 REASONS WHY YOUR BOOK WAS REJECTED, I understood that writer’s reaction. I never want to see this book again either. It’s toxic. It personally attacks writers, and even worse, blames them for things that are outside their control.

Of the “reasons” Nappa gives for rejection by publishers and agents, 27 are things writers can do nothing about. Things like “We’re already publishing a similar book” and “My Sales VP is hostile toward me” and “I had a fight with my spouse just before I read your proposal” and even “You are the wrong gender.” Even so, Nappa still thinks writers should do something about it.

Rejection comes with the territory, and the best advice is to shrug it off and move on. However, Nappa suggests that writers internalize rejection, taking responsibility for it in an unhealthy way. In Nappa’s world, even the most impersonal rejection is something the writer should have been able to prevent by doing things like stalking editors on Twitter and only submitting when they’re in a good mood. (I wish I were making this up.)

Even the fifty reasons under a writer’s control are dubious at best. Things like “You are not on social media” or “Your title stinks” aren’t valid reasons to reject a good book, since those things can change after the deal is made. In fact, very few of the reasons are real reasons at all, other than the writer didn’t do enough of Nappa’s job for him.

The jacket flap of 77 REASONS WHY YOUR BOOK WAS REJECTED promises that readers will discover tips and tricks for avoiding rejection. They won’t. Nappa is eager to tell writers everything they are doing wrong but doesn’t teach them how to do it right. There are a few slivers of good advice in this book, but not enough to make wading through Nappa’s abusive rant worth it, especially since the occasional good advice is quite generic, and can be easily found in other books.

77 REASONS WHY YOUR BOOK WAS REJECTED is a close cousin to THE FIRST FIVE PAGES by Noah Lukeman, and like its predecessor, this book is not one that a writer wants or needs in their how-to library.

Successful people don’t necessarily work longer, harder, or smarter than everyone else, but I can guarantee that successful people work more consistently than anyone else. The little things they do every day add up to huge productivity gains.

Committing to a daily writing practice not only pays off, it pays off with interest. Once that writing habit is in place it will naturally grow, and writers improve with every draft. Thinking about writing doesn’t work. Only butt-in-chair time does.

But how to cultivate that habit? How to make writing such an ingrained part of life that a writer just naturally shows up at the writing desk every day? Fox takes readers step by step into forming and maintaining a writing practice.

It starts with an honest look at how you’re already spending your time. Then Fox helps you get clear on your goals, implement a tracking system, and find writing time. (Yes, he expects you to get up early to write. It works.) Along the way, Fox helps you gather support, banish distractions, and stay inspired. Some of his advice might seem unnecessary and a little new-age, but he argues that visualizing your dream is as important as any other step in forming a lifelong habit.

As I read LIFELONG WRITING HABIT I was pleased to note that I’d already done many of Fox’s action steps. I already write every day and track my progress, but I’m very wishy-washy about when I write. More than once, I’ve written four hundred words right before bed just so I could put something on my spreadsheet for that day. Fox helped me refine my goals and figure out new ways to solidify my habit. I can imagine newer writers getting even more out of LIFELONG WRITING HABIT as they first start incorporating writing time into their lives.

I often read business books and apply their lessons to writing. It seems that Fox does the same, because he references some of my favorites. He has synthesized all the best lessons from Eat that Frog, The Power of Habit, and Switch into one neat package, along with a big helping of Getting Things Done. Fox’s book is extremely practical, packing all his lessons and inspiration into a short ebook with no repetition and no fluff. LIFELONG WRITING HABIT is ideal for any writer who wants to put their butt in the chair every single day.